Classical Music for Aficionados

rvpiano, FWIW I'll contribute a bit, but since I (and many others) have already posted in the past to lists of best/favorites etc and I'm too old to 
just replicate those recommendations, I'm just going to post about music/performers/genre that I'm currently listening to, without regard to professional competency or audiophile credentials. I really like this stuff and It sounds good to me. That's it folks!

I'm currently focusing (mostly) on music for the solo piano and recently discovered a label that supports some newer pianists performing more uncommon/ unusual pieces along with some common ones, some eclectic, but all assessible  and  enjoyable,  in balanced compilations. Happily the audio  is also excellent.

Here are a few on the Steinway & Son's label:

Get Happy - Jenny Lin
Grand Romance - Jeffery Biegel
LaValse - Sean Chen
The Rascal and the Sparrow - Antonio  Pompa- Bald
Exiles Cafe- Lara Downes
American Again - Lara Downes
Siegfried Idyll - David Deveau     

Today I'm having a Gilbert & Sullivan fest! Love that stuff.   Still sing it but now in the shower only. :-)

I can believe this - I just spent half an hour posting and when I hit the post button it was lost, and guess who's sorry! 

Anyway - gs5556, Re your Schubert recommendation, until I heard Mackerras and the OAE  doing the 9th (and 8th) I don't think ever really appreciated it that much. I just love this version and prefer it to all others. Previously I always felt it was a bit too "Great". I felt the same way about a lot of performances of Beethoven's until I heard Harnoncourt's performances of the symphonies, just not a strongly.

Re Mahler's 7th - I like Geilen's 7th, and his others as well, however for some reason I always come back to Levine's 7th. For me his experience in the theater influenced it - it is just more dramatic, mysterious, etc.

Charles1dad, I just can't resist recommending Maria Kliegel's work. A not so well known cellist but unjustifiably IMHO. For a sample check out 'Romantic Cello Show Pieces', Virtuso Cello Encores', 'Virtuso Cello Showpieces', and Sonatas of George Onslow. 

And then there is Janos Starker doing 'Romantic Cello Favorites', the music of David Popper on Delos.

And for something a bit difference check out 'Our American Roots' on Delos. Music of Gershwin, Barber, Walker and Copland. Mostly arrangements for Cello and Piano.

My contribution today is the solo piano music of Ivan Moravec. Two of his records that are just outstanding are his Beethoven Sonatas and a compilation of Mozart, Beethoven, and Brahams. This level of pianoship should not be missed by anyone who cares!  He was a giant! He has a limited recorded  output but these are a dozen or so more should you agree 

Frogman, Glad you came to the party.  Symphonic Dances has been one of my favorites. I really preferred Ashkenazy for years (I had his entire Rachmaninoff output in which I think he excels and still prefer his performance of Sym #1). I just found his performances more exciting than others available. Then I found Yuri Terirkanov and the St Petersberg PO on RCA. As exciting, and a better recording, I think. FWIW.

Off the beaten path perhaps, but I would suggest folks might enjoy the music of Joseph Suk. Some prime Czech music from the 'romantic' period which is very accessible. I can easily recommend Libor Pesek and the Czech PO. Start with 'Praga/A Fairy Tale' and/or 'Serenade for Strings/Under the Apple Tree. For something more advanced and not as accessible, perhaps initially, his Asrael Symphony. I equally enjoy Rafael Kubelik and the Bavarfian SO and Vladimir Ashkenazy and the Helsinki PO. (Can you imagine a Russian conductor and a Finish Orchestra playing Czech music? : -). 

Speaking of Czech music, composers, and another Czech pianist, Antonin Kubalek. As with Moravec (my last post) Kubalek doesn't get near the accolades he deserves. IMHO, two recordings on Dorian of Brahms work are outstanding. He has quite a few other recordings on Dorian, mostly of Czech music which are worth exploring as well.

Now for Schubert enthusiasts, If you haven't heard them yet you should listen to Volodos play Schubert's Sonata in E maj unfinished and his Sonata in G maj 394. If you are just familar with Volodos more 'theatrical recording's, I think you might be pleasantly surprised.

whart, I don't know if you are asking for a recommendation of Scriabin's piano music but just in case - 

You can get a set of the entire solo piano works performed by Maria Lettberg (8CD's)  on the Capriccio label for chump change (unbelievable in fact, I've seen it selling for less than $30.) It's a great place to start.

Schubert, I have a different POV of what has made Orpheus10's thread endure. 1) His thread is as much about him as anything. He is opinionated, outspoken, and is prepared to defend his opinion.
2) He gets out in front with his opinions - he is not passive and he drives the thread. He is not easily intimidated (even when maybe he should be).
3) He creates dialog and controversy which can work well with folks who are not easily intimidated. Even then watching this dialog at its best is very entertaining, and often educational.

whart, I don't know exactly how to define 'spare' but I certainly do enjoy the composer's solo piano music below - it certainly is not exactly 'romantic' but it's not acerbic either, but then Scriabin's isn't either.

Prokofiev's Sonatas and, for me his other music as well if not more. I think Frederic Chiu on Harmonia Mundi is excelent, all 10 volumes.

Janacek - An Overgrown Path, Sonata, and In The Mist by Rudolf Firkusny on RCA. 

Nikolai Medtner  - A good cross section of a collection of small pieces by Geoffrey Tozer appear on Chando Vol #1 of 7 volumes. An audiophile approved recording can be found on a Chesky reissue of 3 larger works.

Lastly, Shostakovich. His 'Piano works' by Askenazy on Decca and/or
Titiana Nikolayeva playing Three Fantaastic Dances, 24 preludes, and Piano Sonata #2, on Hyperion

Hope that helps a bit.

rvpiano, Re the Bells, don’t forget All-Night Vigil. My favorite Rachmaninoff choral. I like Paul Hiller and the Estonian Phil Chamber Choir.

Folks have been mentioning the standard VC’s by the Greats. Some what off the beaten path, yet both enjoyable and memorable, and pretty well done as a group, by Julia Fisher on Pentatone, are the VC’s of Khachaturian, Prokofiev, and Glazunov. I especially like her Khachaturian.

For something in the VC group rarely ever mentioned in these forums, regrettably I think, but then who wants to hear a ’Hollywood’ composer - Miklos Rozsa’s VC on Koch . If anyone likes Rozsa, Chandos has three CD’s which in addition to a lot of Hungarian music is a Cello Concerto I like a great deal.

Now if you like the possibility of some good stuff coming out of Hollywood I can’t resist recommending some of the music of Nino Rota. As an introduction I would recommend Riccardo Muti’s CD on Sony "LaStrada". It contains "Il Gattopardo" which has the potential to become an earworm, an incredible peice.

Next, a recommendation for Malcolm Arnold Dances and Overtures on both Reference and Chandos. The Reference is great ’audio’ as well.

Lastly, speaking of Ballet - how about the Carmen Ballet for strings and perecussions. No Brass! No kidding, great stuff. Put together by a Russian by the name of Shchedrin. I like the LP by Gerard Schwartz, but the same on his CD is pretty good too. Both are quite spacious.

rvpiano, I only have two performances of 'The Bells'  - I'm intrigued by your recommendation of Askenazy on Decca. I have his other Decca recordings and have always enjoyed them, often preferring them. I'll see if I can find his version of 'The Bells'. 

Since you seem to like this type of music I have a recommendation for you -
Alexander Grechaninov, a Russian who's best music (IMHO) is his choral output. Assuming you are not familiar, but interested, I suggest you listen to his 'premier recordings' of Symphony #1, Snowflakes, and Missa Sancti Spiritus by Valery Polyansky with the Russian State Symphonic Cappella and the Russian State SO on Chandos. I'd buy this disc for "Snowflakes' alone. You've got to hear it!

Now if your interested in more Gretchaninov try his Passion Week by the Phoenix Bach Choir and the Kansas City Chorale on Chandos.

Schubert, If you want to explore more Malcolm Arnold you are in luck, in spades. You can get complete sets of Arnold’s music, including all his symphonies initially appearing on Conifer Records in a huge set by Sony and a set of just his symphonies by Chandos, on Amazon for less than $30. I have some of each - the original Conifer seems a tad brighter and more forward, the Chandos a bit more ’relaxed’. Either set though is an huge bargain in any event, and the Conifer by Handley might be a bit more in line with the Composer’s intent if that is important to you.

Here is a disc to fool your ’knowledgeable’ friends. A Stravinsky symphony (#1) which sounds more like Glazunov or Rimsky-K etc than the Stravinsky we all know. I have a Decca recording of the Detroit SO conducted by Dorati. This was Stravinsky’s 1st published music and well worth knowing and having in your collection. It can be found in many set’s of his other works.

A couple of English pieces that sound "Irish", pieces by off the beaten path composers that I enjoy. Arthur Sullivan - "The Irish Symphony" by Hickox on Chandos and Granville Bantock - Celtic and Hebridean Symphonies by Handley and the Royal Phil on Hyperion.

Now for some Finnish music not composed by Sibelius, but quite enjoyable non the less. Uuno Klami’s Karelian Rhapsody et al by Petri Sarkari and the Iceland SO on Chandos. If you enjoy this I can recommend his 2 symphonies(#1 &2) on Ondine by Tuomas Ollila and the Tampere PO. I think I prefer #1 more. If you like these his other works are self recommending I think.

rvpiano, Glad you enjoyed Grechaninov. I think few people have heard this music, too bad. :-)

Now for something else that I consider absolutely delightful. Debussy's La Boite a Joujoux  and Rossini/ Respighi's La Boutique Fantasique. Toy boxes and toy shops.
The former I have on a CD by Tortelier and the Ulster Orchestra (with Ravel's Me Mere l'Oye - Mother Goose ballet) on Chandos, and the latter on a Telarc CD with Rachmaninoff/Respighi's Cinq Etudes-Tableaux as a disc mate.

Now for something a tad more contemporary, but both tonal and very assessible as well as engaging - Menotti. A compilation of his works on a Chandos CD by Richard Hickox and the Spotelo Festival Orchestra. I discovered Menotti on another disc which contains Sebastian and Amahl and the Night Visitors (as well as Samuel Barber's Souvenirs ballet suite). A Koch CD. Also an excellent recording which I've loved for over 25 years.

Hope some of this works for you.

twoleftears, FWIW I agree with your recommendation of Ernest Farrar's Orchestral Works on Chandos. Unfortunately he has a very thin discograph. :-(

Craig, I prefer the Chandos set as well.

And, for 'English-oriented' aficionados I can easily recommend Stanford's Piano Concerto on Chandos. The disc mate is "Concert Variations upon an English Theme 'Down Amound the Dead Men'. Fingerhut on the piano, conducted by Vernon Handley and the Ulster Orchestra. 

Chandos recorded all of Stanford's Symphonies but this is the only thing that really brings me back. I'm quite fond of it.

RCA has a set of all of Vaughn Williams symphonies plus much of the rest of his works, 6CD’s at Archiv Classics for less than $25 and it is in stock.

This is very highly regarded VW, if fact a lot of folks find these performances, as a whole, CD their first choice. An easy recommendation.

Enjoy!

Craig, FWIW I doubt that Hovhaness is ever going to be more popular than he has been made by Mysterious Mountain. He's been around a long time and his music is a bit too eclectic for most. You might try another Schwartz/Seattle Performance on Mount St Helens/City of Light Symphonies on Delos.

 I grew up with Reiner and the CSO performance of Mysterious Mountain on Living Stereo and I still like it a lot. On LP and a good system it is outstanding, I think.

Craig, I goofed. It ArkivMusic.com and it shows as such on Google. 

Sorry about that, but hey it was a long nite. :-)

A couple of off the beaten path 'Symphonies' that I just listened to (but not for the first time!) that I really enjoy when I just want to hear big, bombastic stuff, sort of like many Strauss tone poems, not so much like a more formal  symphony.  Franz Liszt's "Dante Symphony" by Leon Botstein and the LSO on Telarc, and "A Faust Symphony" by Ivam Fisher and the Budapest Festival Orchestra on Phillips. I really enjoy both but I'm partial the the Faust because of the inclusion of the third movement (choral) which includes the voice of Hans Peter Blochwitz. On the cheap you can get a Bernstein and the BSO  performance at Tanglewood on the DG label. Pretty good too!

Beat you to it twoleftears. I just listened to my Maazel/Askenazy  version on Decca's CD.  It too has been on the shelf too long I think. It is an excellent performance and in good sound too. I do not have Pontien's so I cannot comment on the differences but I do find the disc mates on Ashkenazy's CD preferable. I have a Hyperion CD with Scriabin's PC combined with Tchaikovsky's PC. Played by Nikolai Demidenko and the BBC SO.  I give it a listen out of curiosity.

Glad you can appreciate Stanford, cribbing and all. Speaking of cribbing, I was just listening to a real Irishman, Hamilton Harty, who quotes the ’Garry Owen’ in one of his pieces. At least he was Irish! No so much for the 7th Infantry or a couple of movies out of Hollywood. FWIW this tune is a real earworm. You might even try Harty’s "Irish Symphony" where it appears, by Thompson on Chandos if you are inclined.

Following Stanford you might try Arnold Bax. His symphonies and tone poems appear in a set and two separate discs by Handley devoted to his synphonies and tone poems and Bryden Thompson has recorded all of his symphonies, tone poems, etc, on Chandos. One place to start on this music might be Thompsons single disc on Chandos of the 4th Symphony and one of my favorite Bax pieces, Tintangel (a historical and picturesque location on the cliffs of Cornwall). You might also like some of his piano/orchestral music played by Margaret Fingerhut, the LSO by Thompson, Winter Legends and Symphonic Variations (On 2 discs. I’d probably start with Winter Legends.

How come in these forums folks rarely discuss, or even mention, at least so it seems to me, the music of Dvorak. Occasionally someone will mention his Violin or his Cello Concertos, but not so much his symphonies and even less so his Tone Poems and Overtures. This is a rich source of full throated, dramatic, music with an extensive discography. Or do I just enjoy Eastern European music more than most and others find his music unworthy?

Craig, #While Fisher might not be the last word in Dvorak it is certainly pretty good, and the recordings are excellent. If you are interested you might try his version of the VC with the BFO and Akiko Suwanai which is excellent by any standard. If its not quite up to your snuff, you can at least divert your self by looking at the CD cover! Neither are Fisher’s recordings of the 8th and 9th Symphonies and ’Legends’. I have loved Fisher’s Dvorak, unfortunately not so much his work with other composer’ music.

Jarvi’s traversal of the of the Symphonies (and other works on Chandos also gets high marks (from me at least). Other recordings worth exploring are Belohlavek and the Czech Phil on Chandos, Kubelik, and a set by Ivan Kertesz and the LSO (who sez this can’t be done unless the orchestra is Czech.

I just love this Eastern Central European music. Schubert, I know nothing and admit to nothing I don’t know :-)

First I must admit that I prefer my Mahler big, bold, full of angst, etc. Don't care much for the soft romantic approach preferred by many. My favorite symphony is his sixth. I'm partial to Thomas Sanderling and the St Petersburg PO in this symphony but there are others equally enjoyable.

Next I enjoy  the 9th - my favorite is probably Leonard Bernstein and the Berliner Phil in a live performance recorded in 1979 on DG. But there are so many others.....(not all his :-)_

Probably what has gotten the most listening over the past few years is  his 1st in a performance by Benjamin Zander on Telarc. What I really enjoy about this disc is the coupling of his Leider eines fahrenden Gesellen. Love it!

I probably have 200+ recordings of Mahler - it can be tough to choose. This is one body of music where performances really can really critical to the listener. Generally I found I enjoy Tennstedt, Solti, Levine, Boulez, and of course Bernstein as much as any.

A couple of recording that I think worth mentioning in case someone is looking for something rarely heard but in both cases are very accessible neo-romantic music typically released by Chandos. I'm glad to have them in my collection.

Symphony #2 by Randall Thompson (and other works by George Chadwick) Neeme Jarvi and the Detroit SO. Beautiful American symphonic music all. Chandos 9439.

Kara Karayev - various symphonic works - highly influenced (I think) by the major Russian composers of the late 19th and early 20th century  very engaging and very Russian. Chandos 5203. 

One of the downsides of elevating the performance level of an audio system is that one spends more time evaluating the system than actually listening to (and hearing) the music. Witness all of the devotion in this forum to components that are 'revealing' (uber revealing in fact) which are really doing nothing much more than presenting a sound which one would never hear in a live performance. I think (and have found) that a certain dumbing down of a system can often result in a sound that is reasonably listenable with most recorded music, not just the best recordings  over very high end systems. Since the system can no longer be expected to put a Bosendorfer in your room you stop trying to hear it and relax so you can (again) hear the music. IMHO/FWIW.

schubert,  'just takes a thousand changes'

At least! :-) But you still need the 'perfect room', properly set up, and a perfectly recorded  piece of music. If that doesn't drill down the possibilities for obtaining the sound of real live music I must have missed something.

FWIW much as I love solo piano music I've yet to hear an accurate reproduction over an audio system. I'll defer on this to rvpiano  as he is, as I understand, a professional pianist.

Another similar observation - I really enjoy Sharon Isbin, one of our premier classical guitarists. I've heard her live in a specially designed recital hall where her unamplified instrument fills the hall (about 250 capacity) with crystal clear music.  I bought many of her recordings - too many actually. Not one of them came close to this live experience. 

I respectfully submit that perhaps you are really just suspending disbelief. :-)

Ijcazador, If you haven't already heard this, you might like John Ogdon and Brenda Lucas doing some of Rachmaninoff's music for 2 piano's. On ASV CDDCA636. Suite #1, Suite #2, Prelude in C minor Op3 No2, and Russian Rhapsody. 

RV, FWIW you've got a tough job ahead of you if you want to keep this going. Just not that many classical music enthusiasts on this site, especially ones that will actively participate. 

Since you are a professional pianist I thought I would mention a compilation solo piano CD that I not only enjoy totally, but that I also you as a reference for my system. "Michael Sheppard plays Rodgers, Hough, Barber, Sheppard, Crumb, Corigliano, Wild, and Balcom, on Harmonia Mundi. I just don't tire of it. This is very accessible music for anyone who is a bit venturesome.

In the same vein, but for full orchestra, another modern piece that is not only accessible but very enjoyable. Erkki Melartin's Violin Concereto on Ondine. The Tampere Phil conducted by Leif Segerstam.  Hard not to like this piece.

rvpiano, FWIW you can google 'Michael Sheppard, pianist' and you will get several hits which will give you some background on him and this disc. These are for the most part transcriptions (for which I'm a sucker, especially the music of Liszt, Prokofiev, and Wagner) but they are more original in their selection than most and some are Sheppard's own transcriptions. I hope you enjoy.

The last movement of Mahler's 2d symphony - the 'resurrection' part of the symphony for me. Turn up the volume for this! It almost stands on its own. Almost......

Schubert, FWIW, mainly because  your moniker suggests a special interest, a recording of some Schubert's music for solo piano that I can't resist listening to fairly often when I'm in the mood for Schubert, "Le Voyage Magnifique" by Maria Joao Pires on a DG CD. This is a two CD set which includes Impromptus D899, Impromptus D 935, and Drei Impromptus Aus Dem Nachlass D946. 

For anyone who enjoys the Piano Concertos by Chopin, you must hear those by Krystian Zimerman, Carlo Giulini, and the LA Phil, on DG. The music is crystal clear and lyrical. Just beautiful to hear. These easily replace my long time favorites by Claudio Arrau.

twoleftears, Re Boleros - Yep! Note in another thread there is a post by Granyring on the thread ’What used speakers rarely come up for sale to which I responded. Mine aren’t going anywhere. After 7 years they remain my eminent piece of audio gear. Interesting that they have outlasted most Silverline models yet you rarely see them used/for sale. They are for sale now (demo’s) for half of list on A-Gon. What the heck buy them unheard. If you want something that really is "musical - whatever the hell that is, :-), buy them unheard. At worst, they still look pretty.

Re Chopin - glad you have heard them and share my appreciation.

I do have Lupu’s Brahms, and I do like them, quite a bit in fact. I also greatly enjoy two volumes of Brahms solo piano music by Antonin Kubalek on Dorian. Some of the music duplicates Lupu’s but I wouldn’t be without them. I’ve got a lot(!) of Brahms piano music and chamber recordings but these two ’sets’ get nearly all of my attention.

Schubert, LOL, I've got a confession too. I'm not a newbie either. :-)

I have a few of Lupu's Schubert recordings  which I really enjoy, but perhaps not so much as Richard Goode's recordings of his piano sonatas on Non-such. But that is probably only because I first listened to Schubert via Goode and he is one of my favorite Beethoven pianists. Go figure, old dog/new tricks, etc.

Bought a couple of CD’s from Presto a couple of months ago without problems. Never have had a problem with them. 

I haven't heard this recording, or for that matter any of his recordings. My go to Preludes have been those by Tatiana Nikolayeva on Hyperion. I'll have to give his a try.

FWIW, another Shostakovich performance I really enjoy is his Aphorisms, op13, by Ashkenazy on Decca. Give ity a listen if you haven't already.

Welcome Learsfool,

Goody goody, some new music (to me) to look forward to exploring, i.e. Corigliano and Hindermith which I have never heard. 

Learsfool, I agree re Strauss - Baumann's version has always been enough for me. As for Brahms, while I have a bunch of them I always seem to go to a Delos recording titled 'A Brahms/Schumann Soiree', a program which I thoroughly enjoy.

My modest contribution, based solely on my enjoyment, is Gliere's Horn Concerto which I have on a Chandos CD.

Hope you stick around, I've always found you have much of value to contribute. 

Learsfool, +1. "I'm not an anti-semite, some of my best friends are Jews." A more common apologist's self serving statement perhaps, but it must be hard to love Germany and its occupants and not say something.

 I recently watched a program involving Daniels Barenboim's efforts in trying to find accord between Palestinians and Israels through the use of music involving artists with stereotypical political beliefs.  A dissonant  Jew, I think not. And FWIW Wagner is now performed in Israel. Go figure!

But, FWIW, the use of critical analysis is not a prerequisite to forming or expressing a personal opinion, whether we like it or not.

Rachmaninoff's Vespers - FWIW

Re music recommendations vs audiophile recommendations, to paraphrase rvpiano, one must be aware of your audience's priorities when making recommendations. Fortunately, in this case it really is a win/win proposition.

Schubert recently made a recommendation for Vesper's, more correctly known as All-Night Vigil, but called both, and it is hard to find fault with his recommendation. The music in this recording is simply magnificent. The opening with the basses just grabs you and on you go. If it's the only version you have, great. Very Russian I think. I wouldn't be without it!

However, for folks who are audiophiles, such as we have in this forum, there are other recordings which present a valid alternative,  performance wise as well as recording quality. 
The one I have in mind is All-Night Vigil by the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir led by Paul Hiller (Harmonia  Mundi 907384). Apart from the differences in performance, which I will pass on discussing here as those differences are, as always, a matter of personal preference, the acoustic and presentation of the voices, for both the choir members and soloists, has much greater clarity and the recording has a greater sense of transparency and openness. 

Personally I could be happy with either!  

jim, IMHO there is nothing wrong with how you feel about poorly recorded music. I have many, well at least quite a few, records which I bought solely because of the quality of the performance despite the poor quality of the recording. I wanted to be informed. I listened and my curiosity was satisfied. I put them away and rarely have a desire to hear them again. Quite a few of these were old 'live' performances. Richter's Mussorgorsky's Pictures is a clear example. Sonics are terrible but you are unlikely to hear a more exciting performance. 

RV, Ormandy was my intro to Symphonic dances. I still prefer your previous  recommendation of Ashkenazy's.

 FWIW I agree with you about RR recordings, and I feel much the same way about Telarc recordings but for different reasons. I have more that I don't listen to than I do. That said I'm a sucker for RR's Copland Symphony #3. Also some of the earlier RR's are quite good as well. I've always enjoyed Keith Clarks recordings with the Pacific Symphony of the Menotti and Barber VC's and Copland's Appalachian Spring in its original 13 instrument version and which includes Eight Poems of Emily Dickinson sung by Marni Nixon, and a rarely heard Ourdoor Overture. The Telarc recording of Barbers Symphony #1 which includes Higdon's Blue Cathedral and Theofanidis' Rainbow Body is another disc I really enjoy for the music, especially the two modern pieces.

Babies and bathwater......:-)

Thanks for the reference. I haven't heard Ormandy's version in quite a few years - I disassembled my vinyl system and gifted it all, records included, to my son in law. Now I have only CD's and this is not one of them.

Too bad Moravec didn't record more music for the solo piano. I have his Brahms Intermezzo Op117, #2 and OP118 , #2. This recording (Vaia 1096) was my introduction to Brahms solo piano music. Tough to follow up on this. Fortunately for other pianists, unfortunately for us, he didn't record a lot more.

FWIW I have two words for Volodos recording, somewhat dark and  broad (sumptuous?), and flaccid. I agree with your thoughts ---

I took a few minutes this morning and listened to the Intermezzo OP118 by Plowright, Kubalek (a long time favorite -  performances not damaged by the recording) and Lupu. I find  Plowright's Brahms the opposite of  Volodos'. He has 4 volumes of Brahms piano music and I wouldn't be without them. Not sleepy time performances. :-)

Re observations about Volodos - Unless you have an aversion to Moupou's music don't overlook Volodos rendition of Mompou's music for solo piano (what else?). I've enjoyed it every bit as much as his Schubert and Brahms recordings.

Well, twoleftears, something must be wrong with my system. I get no sound beyond the boundaries of my speakers, but then I don’t expect any. You can revisit what I had to say about set up in RV’s other post on imaging wherein I talk about the ’stereo construct’. Only out of phase information can appear there, but side wall reflections are often mis- heard as primary signals. Nothing wrong with setting up your system to get that sound if that is what you really want.

About the recording itself, it is a 1979 DG after all. Not overly warm or romantic. I love the clarity of his and the orchestra in these pieces, as compared to, lets say my old favorite (on LP’s) Claudio Arrau. Neither the piano nor the orchestra dominate. I find the sound balance with the piano on left center of the stage. FWIW I have quite a few of these works but this is the only one I listen to any longer. I understand that he did a redo in 1999 of these works wherein he conducted from the piano with a Polish Orchestra which is highly regarded. These are apparently highly regarded as well even if quite different.

I’m no expert on these pieces. Perhaps RV would like to comment.

RV, I'll look forward to your comments.

FWIW, from an audio perspective only, something I noticed last night after hearing PC 1 and posting. I listened to PC 2 - contrary to my comments about the piano appearing left of center in PC1 (which I rechecked today), in PC2 it was dead center. Additionally the over all gain seemed increased as well. ??? Go figure. Obviously they were recorded on different days, and all of the variables that might bring, or my hearing/audio system isn't up to par. 

RV, thanks. No need for the '99 version I think.

twoleftears, I think you may like the Arrau. I find this performance a bit relaxed and very enjoyable. I think you will like the fact that the piano is more spot lit than Zimmerman's. FWIW, I haven't heard Biret's but she is one very talented lady. She has an large discography on Naxos of romantic solo piano works, including Chopin, Rachmaninoff and Brahms, well worth hearing.

+1 on Wild's 4th. For that matter I consider one of the great values in audio is the set of all 4 concertos by these forces. It's now available in a set on Amazon for $22 plus. Twoleftears, seriously, don't miss this if you really like these works. :-)

I don't know greatest, but I have co-favorites -

Liszt's Annees de pelerinage and Schumanns Fantasy in C Major.

twoleftears, glad you liked this CD. After recommending something its nice to hear that some one tried it out and agreed.

FWIW, although this is not part of this thread we have discussed its elsewhere recently in another thread and I thought perhaps you would like to know. Re soundstaging and the appearance of sound occurring outside of your speakers, this occurs from the presence of 'out of phase' sounds in the recording. For a similar affect, listening to a TV with or without a audiophile set up involved, especially with out, you often hear ambient noises (doors slamming, planes, cars going by etc) coming from all about your room. This is the same out of phase information. The effect is very similar to what you might hear if you were to just reverse the cable connectors on one set of speakers in your system, i.e. you get sound from all about you, but have no focused center image. 

Gottschalk anyone?

I just purchased a new Gottschalk (and Cuba) for solo piano by Antonio Iturrioz on the Steinway label (I love this label for its solo piano music compilations!) Nice disc but not so much for the Gottschalk unless you want a ’slow and dreamy’ one.

But this disc caused me to get out a pair of Gottschalk’s CD I haven’t listened to in a while, a CD (Vol 1) "The Banjo", dedicated to solo piano music by performed by Eugene List and Vol 2 "A Night in the Tropics" which includes the Grande Tarantelle performed by List, Maurice Abravanel and the Utah State Orchestra and more music for solo piano by List.

Outstanding music! I recommend it, especially if you like lively music more than sleep. FWIW I think List owns this music! This is an old set of recordings re-mastered for CD. Good, but not SOTA by any means. But, truly, it really is about this music.

It’s not just you. I think most folks here have the problem to one degree or another. You’ve just changed hobbies from music to audio. Time to get back into music - perhaps its time to explore and expand your interests in new (and some old) music. I’ll bet, despite your background, that there is a lot of stuff out there that you have yet to experience in more than a passing mode. Worked for me anyway. That and a dose of reality about what I could actually achieve with audio in my home. Except for a tube change now and then I’m pretty happy. Good luck.

If you haven't already, you might enjoy Berman's  performance of Liszt's 'Annes' on DG. One of the best I think, although it is hard to find a performance I don't enjoy.

Talking about Rachmaninoff doing Rachmaninoff ...

Telarc made two recordings of piano rolls performances by Rachmaninoff doing his own works for solo piano on one CD and the works of others on a second one. The CD's are titled 'A Window in Time'. Amazing works realized by Wayne Stahnke.  It is facinating that they could do this at all, let alone so well. I suspect that most listeners would, initially at least, think that these are live recordings of a real performing person (Rachmaninoff).

A couple of CD sets some of you may like, a lot. I do anyway.

Sokolov  The Salzburg Recital and Sokolov  Schubert //Beethoven. The former is mainly Mozart and Chopin and the second, as the title suggests, Beethoven and Schubert. Both live recitals with encores as well. Very high level of performances. Both DG CDs.